Pre-European history The name
Wairarapa means "glistening waters" in the
Māori language. According to some oral histories, the Polynesian explorer
Kupe named the wetlands after touching down in the area several times. According to other oral histories, explorer Haunui named the wetlands after the way the lake appeared to glisten from the
Remutaka Ranges to the west.
Rangitāne began settling in the region in the 15th century.
Ngāti Ira also settled in the wetlands before moving to the
Wellington Harbour.
Ngāti Kahungunu came later and were in regular conflict with Rangitāne until a political agreement was reached in the 17th century. European farmers established sheep and cattle stations in the wetlands in 1844, including the first extensive sheep station in New Zealand. Many early farmers struggled with mosquitoes and floods, and relied on purchasing food from their Māori landlords.
Initial restoration Plans to drain Lake Wairarapa were abandoned in 1989. A National Water Conservation Order, issued in 1989, recognised minimum water levels should be maintained to protect native habitats and wildlife. An oversight committee was established which recognised the wetland's spiritual and cultural significance to Māori people. Several further steps were taken to protect the wetland, including the establishment of legal protections under the
Resource Management Act in 1991, the development of an action plan by the
Department of Conservation in 2000, the establishment of a clean streams accord by
Fonterra in 2003, and the conversion of of marginal farmland to wetlands in 2004. The Government announced $3.5 million in funding towards wetland restoration in July 2020. and the Department of Conservation an additional $450,000. Almost 13,000 plants were planted in winter 2020, but many did not survive in the dry and exposed conditions. Wairarapa Moana was recognised as a wetland of international significance under the
Ramsar Convention in August 2020. It was the seventh New Zealand wetland to receive the recognition. Restorative plantings were damaged or uprooted in September 2020. An open day was held in the park in March 2021.
Predator control In 2023, the
Greater Wellington Regional Council reported that since the installation of a network of predator traps in 2013, they had removed hundreds of ferrets, feral cats and mice, and thousands of hedgehogs and rats. Control of these predators has been linked to increasing populations of the nationally critical
Australasian bittern or
matuku hūrepo. ==Recreation==